Putting Words in Palin's Mouth

There was a flutter of attention when McCain campaign manager Rick Davis told a group of Post reporters and editors yesterday that his team was having to rework the vice presidential acceptance speech because the original draft, prepared before Gov. Sarah Palin was chosen, was too "masculine." While we all wondered to ourselves what might make a speech masculine or feminine, no one batted an eye at the underlying revelation: that the campaign was writing the nominee's speech before knowing who the nominee would be.

Sarah Palin prepares for her speech tonight. (AP Photo/ABC News)

Never mind the prehistoric days when a politician might be expected to write his or her own words; speechwriters have been around since long before television. But traditionally their job was to channel their bosses' thoughts and ideas into poetry, or at least comprehensible English. Nowadays, apparently it's naive to expect a speech even to reveal something of the essential views or character of the speaker. Instead, campaigns -- not just the McCain campaign -- draft their speeches with an eye to which demographic groups need to receive which messages, and then we in the media rate the speeches based on how well we think they hit those targets.

So when you watch Sarah Palin tonight, expect to learn something about how well she handles a Teleprompter. Expect to learn something about the McCain campaign's assessment of its political standing with women, or working families, or social conservatives. Whether you're learning what Sarah Palin really thinks or feels is anybody's guess.

For the most part all convention speeches are prepared by the candidate's campaign. Barack Obama had to get special permission to write his own speech in 2004, and even that had to be vetted (and was edited) by Kerry's folks. Fred probably would do well to act less nostalgic for a time that really didn't ever exist -- political speeches have always been about presentation more than informing folks forever. As such, you find out what the candidate wants you to know about themselves -- not anything remotely interesting.

If you want some "inner look" into the candidates, why not examine the policy proposals they've made? That can tell you alot more about their worldview than trying to play armchair psychologist while watching a speech.

James@1:08
I guess it's just the eternal optimist in me that secretly hoped that at least the VP would be allowed to have his or her own speechwriters put together a speech that at least sounds like them, even if it was analyzed and vetted by the campaign before it was delivered.

As for the issues, well, I've done my reading up, and I'm a full-throated Obama supporter. I look to the speeches to simply show me how effective the presenter would be in making his or her case towards implementing those policies.

So who decides what will be said? Who are the puppeteers behind the show? Why should anyone take any of these candidates seriously if they are incapable of speaking for themselves? Why have a person in office at all if all that this person does is read a script determined and written by someone else? Perhaps this explains why Republicans will say anything one day and the opposite thing the next, each time feigning conviction, since what they say is cynically intended only to make a sale to an audience, whereas what they ultimately do always follows an ideological doctrine. If Cheney pulls Bush's strings, who pulls McCain's and Palin's?

I would expect the Palin's speech tonight to be an extension of the McCain campaign. What I have been looking for and haven't found is the record of Palin's foreign policy and international issues positions made before 8-29-08. We heard in debates what Guiliani, Romney, Huckabee, Paul and Thompson believed. I feel definitely shortchanged in that I can get no sense of what Palin thought before she became McCain's running mate. The closest I could come was her comments that she hadn't been paying attention to Iraq and she hoped they had a plan for it. Readers, please help me out. Where is Palin's international record to be found?

Several commenters are missing the key point; it isn't that McCain's people are writing Palin's speech. Of course they are. That's normal in modern times.

McCain's people wrote or at least okayed everyone else's speech at the convention as well.

There was a story out last week that Obama's people nixed a red meat line in Dennis Kucinich's speech; indicating that Kucinich (or his speechwriters) had wrtten the speech but needed Obama approval. Once again, perfectly normal.

Here, however, the speechwriters didn't even worry about who was delivering the speech; they wrote it before the nominee was even determined.

That may be the norm now as well, but it's the first I've heard of it.

What it means is that the McCain folks wrote a speech for a man and then suddenly had to retool it in haste.

And if you've been remotely following this story, you'd know that McCain really, really, really wanted LIEberman, but the far right would have revolted.

That's where Palin steps in. McCain can't even stand up to his own party. So he panders to it by selecting someone as far, far too the right as he can find. That Palin was a woman is just an added bonus for him.

This selection has nothing to do with "Country First" and everything to do with "Party First".

i believe kucinich wrote his own speech, based on his submitting it to review (and having one line removed) - there was also much made of the fact that neither clinton DID submit their drafts for review. i take that to mean that democratic speakers, or their personal speechwriters, wrote their speeches.

this may be true of some of the republican speakers as well, it probably is. but the v.p. candidate? that's pretty surprising. especially with the number of days b/t her acceptance and her convention speech.

Let's not overgeneralize or oversimplify. The Post did a lot of detailed reporting on speechwriting at the DNC and I'm sure it will re the RNC as well.

As I recall from the reporting, Obama did a lot of the writing on his acceptance speech. Other speakers submitted their speeches for approval or editing (with an edit of one line by Kucinich, for example). Montana governor Schweizer was told to make his speech stronger or get a lesser spot on the schedule, and that advice benefited him as well as the party. Hillary submitted hers quite late and I bet the Obama people stepped rather lightly on that one (!), and Bill Clinton shared his basically just before stepping on the stage. Joe Biden's speech was reported to be written with input by his own favored speechwriters, his family members, and Obama's most senior advisors.

All of that sounds right and like we are truly hearing from the people who are speaking. But handing a VP nominee--in other words, someone at a very senior level in the party--a speech to recite is just sad. And, as Fred Hiatt notes, it means we won't learn a thing about her own perspective. I guess we have to wait for her to respond to questions in actual interviews to get to know Sarah Palin.

"So when you watch Sarah Palin tonight, expect to learn something about how well she handles a Teleprompter. Expect to learn something about the McCain campaign's assessment of its political standing with women, or working families, or social conservatives. Whether you're learning what Sarah Palin really thinks or feels is anybody's guess."
----------------------------------

First off, speeches are never exclusively written by candidates themselves; although they may develop themes, formulate minor sections of prose, and tinker here and there with specific statements. But there is not one candidate for President in the modern era that has written their own speech from start to finish. The demands on their time are far greater than most could imagine.

Second, one might point out that Senator Biden has been known to leave his speechwriting to other third, and often unattributed, parties.

This article tells you more about the state of the press today than it does about the state of politics today.

No one is surprised that the McCain campaign is writing Palin's speech. What does surprise me is that a horde of journalists heard that there was an early draft of the VP speech that was "too masculine" for Palin to deliver and and none of them realized that American voters might want to know which lines in the speech we will hear tonight are, in the minds of McCain and his handlers, too tough to be uttered by a female candidate.

Instead of talking incessantly about a teenage pregnancy that is nobody's business, it would be nice if the press would do its job and find out which topics included in the first draft of the speech are taboo for a female candidate.

"So when you watch Sarah Palin tonight, expect to learn something about how well she handles a Teleprompter."

Talk about the soft bigotry of low expectations.

Please don't repeat catch phrases without thinking about them first. The word "bigotry" only applies to groups, not individuals. You can't be bigoted towards just one person (Palin), and so the phrase plainly doesn't apply here unless you're accusing Hiatt of sexism or some broader bigotry, which would be completely unfounded.

$50 says Biden had an extensive hand in writing his VP acceptance speech. Another $50 says were he given a finished speech and instructed to mechanically repeat verbatim, no questions asked, he'd politely advise those involved to piss off, Obama included.

This all goes to show superficial and cynical politics has become. We now have fill-in-the-blank candidates. It makes me wonder what the campaign whiz kids could do with a Fred J Muggs? No doubt this one time companion to Dave Garroway on the Today Show could be made to look experienced in foreign policy (after all he spent his childhood in African jungles) and is a real family man (what else could wearing diapers possibly mean?).

Well, this will be a nice change for the VP to be a sock puppet instead of the other way around.

In all seriousness, it doesnt seem to appear to be McCain's style to 'share' power. By picking someone fairly inexperienced, he doesnt have to worry about being outmaneuvered or having conflicting messages.

i guess all of you who are making juvenile, sexist comments about Gov. Palin think its ok since you're voting for obama, right? i mean, after all, supporting him clearly means you're not a racist, too, right?

Honestly it is sad if she didnt really write her own speech or did only a little work on it. Honestly though this lady is pro-life and voted for abstinence only in schools among other things; a real democrat would never vote for what she stands for...(that PUMA group is crazy). As for teenage girls getting pregnant maybe if we gave children a more comprehensive sex education so they know how to have sex responsible when the time comes or decide they no longer want to abstain. And this is isnt about her little girl being preganant but what her mothers views are on sex education among so other things....

well, free spirit, maybe while Gov. Palin can think about having a frank discussion with her children on the issues of sex and responsibility, Sen. Obama can think about having a conversation with his kids on the dangers of cocaine.

'Desperate times call for desperate measures', and Gov. Palin is no exception. Does the GOP really think that Democrats would stoop to 'switch vote' just because Hilary Clinton didn't get the nod?

If so, that is THE most 'sexist' stereotyping I have witnessed in US politics.

One should could care less if the candidate is of any colour, gender, or race.......who best can do the job and possess the values or beliefs that one has as a voter. THAT my friends is true equality....when we have reached the point in our history that we don't even NOTICE colour, race, or gender.

Just because Palin is a woman, or Obama has a black father should not matter one iota.

Well, the good news is that she doesnt have to speak to the black people, hispanic people and the asians, for after all the camera shots of the crowd for the past two days, there was not one of those minorities represented in the crowd. Oh, except for MCCains adopted daughter. Seriously, and watch tonight, the same ol, same ol looking Republican Party.

and as for the puppet comment, assuming palin is a puppet, at least she's only the vp. obama is the puppet for the democratic party powers that be. why do you think none of them--Pelosi, Reid, etc--wanted Hillary to be the nominee (or even the VP)?

i think its funny that people are so threatened by a successful woman. i mean, she can't be smart, right? she's just a governor...anyone can do that. well, apparently not any of you fools with your witty teleprompter jokes. maybe attacking a woman who has accomplished more in her 44 years than any of you guys will accomplish in several lifetimes makes you feel just a little bit better about your manhood. of course, unfortunately you'll be jolted back to reality about your shortcomings the next time you go to the bathroom.

The more we learn about Gov Palin, the more I'm reminded of John McCain.

Both of them stick to their principles, even in the face of enormous political pressure (not to mention torture, in McCain's case) to do otherwise. I don't agree with all of their positions, but I at least I know where both of them stand.

You are seriously deluded if you think Obama or any other politician wants to get into an office or stay there once he/she is in, writes their own speeches.
They ALL employ armies of writers to make sense of the voices in their sick and twisted heads!

It's ironic that this column is titled "Post Partisan" when the editor of the Opinion's Page, Mr Hiatt, is clearly anything but that. It's not what he wrote here that is so glaringly reflective of his neo-con slant, but it's what he left out:

From the Wall Street Journal referencing Obama's convention speech:

"The Illinois senator was still putting the finishing touches on his acceptance speech Wednesday, and had yet to take a planned walk-through of Invesco Stadium, where he’ll deliver his address Thursday. Obama wrote much of the speech himself and began working on a draft two weeks ago during his vacation in Hawaii."

An honest reporter, or even "Opinionator" like Hiatt would surely have mentioned this most salient fact: Obama wrote (most) of his own speech. Instead, Hiatt actually goes out of his way to imply the opposite:

HIATT: "Instead, campaigns -- not just the McCain campaign -- draft their speeches with an eye to which demographic groups need to receive which messages,"

Mr Hiatt, you are a shameless hack and GOP propandist. Shame on you and shame on the Washington Post for not showing you the door. Time for you to go.

people seem impressed that obama writes his own speeches. this is not surprising, since he is a speaker, not a leader. that's like being impressed that you hired a stuntman to headline the new MI:9 movie, and he did his own stunts! of course, his acting sucks, but he did his own stunts! would you rather elect some with a history of governing, or someone who writes great speeches? actions, as they say, speak louder than words. people seem to be rallying around obama solely for his words/promises, which is what troubles me.

i guess all of you who are making juvenile, sexist comments about Gov. Palin think its ok since you're voting for obama, right? i mean, after all, supporting him clearly means you're not a racist, too, right?

----

It was McCain's campaign manager that called the speech too "masculine". Sounds like we'll be hearing nothing but veiled sexism tonite at the RNC.

mark, whats to face? Gov. Palin has run a STATE and obama has only run campaigns. i mean, even when he wins he can't even vote as an elected official. he's nothing more than a professional politican and speechwriter. if you support him, discuss his results as a senator. discuss his bi-partisan efforts in the senate. post some of his real accomplishments that he's introduced about the economy, foreign relations, immigration, campaign finance...something. there's a reason that even his strongest supporters and fellow politicians can't answer that question even after all these months---because he doesn't have any.

of course, i do believe obama is all about the change he discusses. i mean, he changed his mind on off-shore drilling, changed his mind on how bad it was to vote for the war (he picked war voter biden), etc.

Once she accepts the VP nomination it’s going to be extremely clumsy when they actually jettison her. Jettison her? Bristol’s pregnancy? No, that’s not why. Trooper Gate? Nope, not even close…. It’s because she’s a separatist. A what??? Well you see Sarah Palin and her husband actively support the separation of Alaska from the United States. That’s a FACT and that FACT will result in her being jettisoned from the ticket. In America we kinda like our VP’s to be patriotic, you know pro American. Separatists are frowned upon for the VP position. Also, what does it say about John McCain’s leadership when he selects a separatist as his running mate?

The question is not whether a mother of five can be VP or president. According to the constitution, Palin could be VP or president because she was born here and older than 35. The question is whether she has the skills, wisdom and fortitude to be best VP or best president that this nation could offer. To put it very, very kindly, she is lacking on all fronts.

There are a lot of ominous clues about Palin which are glossed over by the adoring, uncritical crowds in the GOP whom McCain has wooed with her selection. She is a blank slate, not because the media doesn't know about her, but because she herself has said she knows nothing about major issues like foreign policy. For instance, she has repeatedly said she doesn't know anything about Iraq other than 'there must be a plan' and 'there are some new deployments', etc.

How in God's name after 5 years of the most brutal debate over the defining foreign policy issue in America can she be 100% verifiably clueless about this topic?

Furthermore, any knowledge she gains between now and the election will not come because of in-depth analysis and critical thinking about the matter, but because of superficial tutoring by GOP hacks to figure out how to most effectively regurgitate the party talking points on the matter.

McCain has condescendingly chosen a self-admitted know-nothing for this foreign policy debate. McCain is effectively telling her to go play nicely with the social conservatives while
he and his buddies talk about the important stuff.

The McCain selection of Palin mirrors George W. Bush's selection of Harriet Miers for the dog-gone US Supreme Court...

except that GWB knew Miers for several years before he made his unwise pick; McCain shot from the hip with Palin in a highly dangerous way.

Mr. Hiatt:
If armchair psychology is your game, try this one for size:
Given your questioning of who's really who, what is your psychoanalytical assessment of everyone involved in this presidential race?
When you're done sifting through the many changing positions, all the empty words and the ever-present talking points presented by both parties, let me know.
Oh, and of course you can do without a biased perspective, right?

Here we go again with the mob of ugly haters, spineless losers terrified of powerful women, frothing at the mouth to rip her apart because you're tiny and lifeless between your legs.

Who do you think you are? What makes you so superior? You're probably fat, balding, ugly men with nothing going on in your life.

Gov. Palin has had a full, accomplished life, unlike Obama who smoked pot, played basketball, and was aimless until he hooked up with that lunatic Rev Wright and others.

Hate to burst your irrational bubble, but Obama does NOT write his speeches. Big duh. No candidate writes their speeches. God, you people are so excruciatingly dumb. There was even a media profile done on one of his speechwriters.

I'm waiting for her church to hit the main news. Comments she's made speaking at that church such as "Iraq is a task from god." Another one is "lets pray for that 30M pipeline. "I think God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that.''

Her pastor takes the cake:

On Bush Kerry:
"I'm not going to tell you who to vote for, but if you vote for that other guy I can't guarantee your salvation."

On Bush after Katrina:
"I hate criticisms towards the president, because it's like criticisms towards the pastor -- it's almost like, it's not going to get you anywhere, you know, except for hell. That's what it'll get you."

On 9/11:
Heaven, charged that the 9/11 terrorist attacks and Iraq were part of a war "contending for your faith;" and that Jesus "operated from that position of war mode."

So, according to this wacko's church, if at any time you disagreed or found issue with Bush you are going to hell.

Lets face it, the GOP doesn't want to be at the helm when the ship goes down, and our economy is in for some real rough seas ahead. Rove strategy is to let the Dems take command for 4 years, so the GOP can blame 20 years of bad Fed policy, and 8 years of overspending and complete lack of fiscal responsibility to the American people on Obama.

It's the same garbage - you can't argue against these candidates on what they stand for so you pick at silly little things, and your readers jump all over it. The truth, whether it be that Dan Quayle had a brain and a much more varied and accomplished record than Obama has, or that Sarah Palin actually has something to offer, is irrelevant to you all. And when the Republicans win the general election, you are amazed - shocked! - that they won because of course everyone thinks like you don't they?

There was a saying in England, "God Save the Queen." We need a revision of that, here and now, in America. No, not to save a queen, but to save our country.

Being an Independent (read: neither Democrat or Republican), and against the existence of a party system in our government (by the people, of the people, for the people... not a party), I am thoroughly amazed at the large quantity of one-sided posts.

There are a lot slanted posts here and elsewhere ridiculing Palin for no experience, so I'll vote for Obama (what has Barack done for Illinois?) One poster went so far as to state they did their research, and STILL stated Palin was inexperienced!

This is another classic case of voting for the lesser of two evils, just like we had four years ago. Deciding between Bush and Kerry was tough enough, now we have another tough call on our hands. Yes, both McCain and Obama are evil. The posts here clearly state this. Which one is not as evil? Another tough question.

I'm still waiting for a viable alternative candidate to appear, but that doesn't seem likely to happen. Please, don't mention Ron Paul, Ralph Nader, or any other career candidate. I did say 'viable.'

Obama can clearly deliver a magnificent speech. Does he write his own speeches? It doesn't matter. Does McCain write his own? Again, it doesn't matter. Speech writers have been employed, and will continue to be employed by our leaders. Get used to it. The media and a lot of voters put way too much weight on the quality of a speech, rather than actual "been there, done that" experience. A good or bad speech doesn't make a good or bad leader. Leadership makes a good or bad leader.

McCain has shown his leadership, and his willingness to go against his own party. Obama has shown he can deliver great speech after great speech after great speech (I used three on purpose, borrowing from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, as Barack does). McCain has shown his willingness to stand up and lead. Obama has delivered another great speech (don't worry, I'm not going to repeat it again). Again, what has Obama actually done for Illinois?

Biden has not shown any significant leadership in his long tenure in Congress. Palin has shown a lot in her relatively short tenure. Biden goes with the party, and Palin, like McCain, has gone against her own party for the good of her constituents. The experience nod, as well as the leadership nod must go to the McCain-Palin ticket.

So the speech was already written for a generic VP, and now they (not "she") are rewording it for Sarah Palin, and all the concern trolls can harp on is that by mentioning the teleprompter, Hiatt is somehow implying that she can't read? Or that Biden sometimes quotes others in his speeches?

Wow, desperate much?

And quit lying about Biden. Do some research and see that that smear is bogus.

And slightly off-topic, I just keep wondering when Levi was told (and who told him) that he'd be getting married this fall...

let's see, all of the countless obama lovers, here and elsewhere, can only talk about his speeches. where is the action? as for skills, wisdom and fortitude to be VP, where exactly does giving a good speech qualify one to be president?

face it obama-philes, obama's only accomplishments are only personal, not political. tell me one major problem, as a senator, that he tackled? tell me when he forged a partnership with a republican to accomplish something that was controversial and that he pulled together a coalition to get something done?

the fact is, obama is all style but no substance. i mean, if this were a vote for prom king, he would have my vote hands down.

As McSame's handlers said yesterday, they think people vote for personalities, not policy. Who she is or what she believes isn't nearly as important to them as creating an image that resonated with the focus groups. Voters who think they "know" these candidates are almost as gullible as Bush when he said he looked into Putin's eyes and saw his soul. (I wonder if Bush still has a man-crush Mr.KGB?)

As long as politicians can count on people thinking they can see the candidate's soul, we'll keep electing drinking buddies instead of wise leaders.

I think letting Palin speak at all is a disaster in itself. I cringe every time see that "18 million cracks in the highest glass ceiling" clip when McCain announced her to be his VP buddy - her voice is just so whiny. I feel like I'm watching an episode of The Hills when I hear her.

I give her 2 more weeks before she gets booted (or, "resigns") from the ticket anyway.

Obaama offers us a big step into the future, creating the "green collar worker". He has a natural talent for using simple logic to solve complex problems. The green collar worker will help solve a multitude of problems in our country.

What does his opponent offer beyond plundering our natural resources while our children die in foreign lands and we destroy our environment?

please, no one has had an image crafted any more smoothly than obama. i mean, all he ever did in the primary was play that broken record of "change" and "hillary voted for the war". his image has been completely crafted and trotted out by the dems. why do you think biden himself said that wisecrack about obama being a "clean" and "articulate" black man?

m whit---should we also ask obama about helping your own brother? if you can't even help your own family how can you help the country? insincerity at its best. i guess obama's actions may actually speak louder than his words.

Obama is famously known for writing his own speeches. This is apparently something Palin could NEVER be trusted to do by the McCain campaign.

SARAH PALIN IS UNQUALIFIED TO BE A HEARTBEAT AWAY FROM THE PRESIDENCY BECAUSE:

She is currently under investigation by the State of Alaska for abuse of power for firing a public official who REFUSED to ILEGALLY FIRE Palin's ex brother-in-law. Palin wanted him fired because he was in a custody dispute with her sister.

Palin tried to ban books at the Library when she was mayor of her 9000 population town and wanted to fire the librarian. Palin doesn't approve of the First Amendment's right of free speech in America.

Palin insists upon her hypocrisy of forcing abstinence only education on America even after it failed in her own family.

Palin is a former member, donor, and participant in the convention of an UNAMERICAN Alaska SECCESSIONIST political party

Palin is backed by big oil and denies that burning oil - or any human activity - is causing global warming and is against renewable energy

Palin backs the concept of ear marks in legislation to bring the pork home to Alaska. She sought them out - totally opposite of the McCain campaign's effort to end ear marks. She is against taxes on the oil industry that would offset the Federal pork spent in Alaska - the state with the highest amount of ear-mark pork legislation.

I have never, ever met a politician on the federal or state level who writes his or her own speeches from scratch. (The same goes for corporate executives.) And, yes -- they ALL use teleprompters, some more effectively than others.

The politican often advises the speechwriter in advance about the points he or she wishes to make and suggests changes afterward. The speechwriter is also briefed by the party leaders about the general tone and direction that should be captured.

Then the speeches are reviewed by the legal team and the party leaders, with revisions made accordingly.

So, those brilliant zingers and empassioned statements that we've heard at the conventions? They are not the clever thoughts of the politians, but the creative work of the speechwriters.

Furthermore, it behooves a party to have a speech "in the can" (as was done for the unnamed GOP VP nominee) for the same reason that this very newspaper writes obituaries for the decidedly undead well in advance.

The odds favor men in this town, hence the masculine slant of the canned speech, I presume.

I agree with the reader who cautions everyone to wait for the debates before passing judgment. Yes, the candidates will be thoroughly prepped. But, it is there that you will get a peek at the tiniest glimmer of the true nature of these candidates... live and largely unscripted.

This is pathetic. I was hoping that The Washington Post would not be drinking the Obama Kool-Aid as undiluted as The New York Times does. Give McCain and Palin a break for a change. Start exposing Obama's and Biden's past peccadilloes.

Media do your damn job and do it without bias. Stop acting like the media in the Third World.

"Gov. Palin has had a full, accomplished life, unlike Obama who smoked pot, played basketball, and was aimless until he hooked up with that lunatic Rev Wright and others."
Get a clue

Hey Get a Clue, you should get a clue.
Obama has had a full accomplished life as a graduate of Harvard, head the the Harvard Law Review and now ELECTED the first AA nominee by a major party for president. BTW: Sarah Palin also admitted to smoking pot so big deal. And Palin's Pastor is right in the same league as Rev. Wright, not to mention the words of her Alaska Independance Party founder who also "damns" America.

the best things about Palin's daughter pregancy is that now the upstanding leader on the right will rethink their views on sex education in school and realize the parent are falling short of their duties to fully dicuss sex to teenagers. Hatnks Sara for bring this to the fort front for discussion. Finally, teen oregancy is no longer a problem in the black communities and the poor whites.

If I were a betting person, this long shot could bring good returns.
Just to really shake things up, let's take a look at what might happen because of all the media on her and her family.
In a few weeks Governor Palin will step up to the microphone and step back from the nomination. She will claim it is either because of her young child with Down's Syndrome, her young daughter's pending parenthood, or just the realization that her family is just too important for her to lose time with them for a minimum of four year while performing the job of V.P.
What will Senator McCain do? This fine upstanding woman has chosen to pass up a great honor as her family just has to come first. He will be put on the spot no longer having a running mate, but he will perform admirably in rapidly picking another choice to fill role of his running mate. And with so little time before the election, what else could he do? Who he chooses may not be a favoured choice of the party, but the vote must go on and the new choice must be accepted if the Republican party is going to keep doing what is right for this country.
As I said, if I was a betting person...

The personal Palin story is overshadowing a much more significant piece of news:
"We learned last week that John McCain really wanted to choose his very good friend, Joe Lieberman, for VP but caved into pressure from the religious right. McCain will save his Lieberman pick for the Supreme Court — sorry evangelicals but you’ll have no leverage on Maverick McCain by then. Your Vice President will have no power in the process and a Democratic majority will happily confirm pro-choice Lieberman to the Supreme Court!”
Please understand the debate about abortion is essentially over. Perhaps that became somewhat clearer during Lieberman's address to the convention last night. It takes some time for this profound reality to sink in.

I hope Sarah Palin talks about some drilling, or maybe the virtues of creationism. Perhaps, after talking about how human activity doesn't affect global warming, Palin can talk about how, if elected, women in the US will have nothing left whine about as the glass ceiling will magically dissapear by the simple virtue of having a female VP regardless of a complete lack of policy changes.

Yes, I expect big change with this ticket, the kind of change we can believe in, a change for the worst.

As suggested by other posters, why don't you look up these people's actual stances on the issues, forget the media drivel, and forget playing "armchair psychologist" when watching speeches as the poster James Hare put it.

Here we go again with the mob of ugly haters, spineless losers terrified of powerful women, frothing at the mouth to rip her apart because you're tiny and lifeless between your legs.

Who do you think you are? What makes you so superior? You're probably fat, balding, ugly men with nothing going on in your life.

Gov. Palin has had a full, accomplished life, unlike Obama who smoked pot, played basketball, and was aimless until he hooked up with that lunatic Rev Wright and others.

Hate to burst your irrational bubble, but Obama does NOT write his speeches. Big duh. No candidate writes their speeches. God, you people are so excruciatingly dumb. There was even a media profile done on one of his speechwriters.

This morning about half the news links I hit about Palin lead to pages that are no longer there. There is heavy censorship going on by the republican party. They are calling all news media and asking them to take down articles relating to Palin or Bristol. You don't have to go to Beijing to feel the effects of censorship. It is happening right here in the United States thanks to the republican convention and the party's heavy weights.

Obama wrote his own speech. Biden wrote his own speech, longhand in fact, in the 72 hours before the Dem convention. Kerry wrote his own speech in '04. Gore wrote his own speech in '00.

Among Republicans, well, Lincoln wrote his own speeches, but those days are gone. Today's GOP presidents (and veeps) just read the words on the teleprompter. The writing is done by others (Safire, Noonan, Gerson, etc.). They're all just hired help, the ghostwriters and pols alike.

I am an independent. I follow politics closely and always vote, sometimes for the Democrat, sometimes for the Republican. I gave up listening to speeches at national conventions years ago because these are staged events, so closely managed that there is nothing spontaneous left. Much more is revealed at townhall meetings with voters asking questions. It is noteworthy that McCain offered just such a forum to Obama, but was turned down. It seems that Obama, like Bush, does well only in a scripted format, and bumbles and stumbles when asked impromptu questions. His glittering rhetoric which mesmerizes his acolytes and causes some to faint in the mosh pits at his rallies is not easily called forth in the extemporaneous setting.

You forget this a Party meeting. The Party nominee runs the show. It is his party, his Party and his running mate.

I am sure no running mate would just say what they are told to say. (Did you ask Obama is his folks wrote Biden's speech?)

Posted by: Kris in AL | September 3, 2008 1:03 PM

--

Oh, come on. The woman is in the deep water now. She knows that even if she fails she's guaranteed a job on Fox, two ghosted books, and eight figures a year. Of course she's going to say what they tell her.

Look for a speech that reflects the coming McCain presidency. John McCain is the first name on the ticket and it is his campaign. Remember too, McCain, unlike Obama, had his pick of anyone he wanted to be his running mate. Palin reflects McCain's views on how to defend, administer and interpret an American democratic republic without revising the true meaning of the Constitution and without being a slave to a Euro-socialist agenda. I'm looking forward to Governor Palin's speech and her place in the next presidential administration. I'm curious to know who the rest of McCain’s cabinet will be; probably more mavericks ... much to the fear and anxiety of those liberals who survive November.

The scenario below would be the first true "Unity Ticket" in the United States.

McCain is a thinly Republican veiled Independent at best.
More an Independent at heart and in practice. Bravo!!!

Copy from above:
"If McCain wins, I bet within six months, the vice president will resign for the old "to spend more time with her family" reason and then Lieberman will be nominated to take her place."

As an independent female who supported Hillary - I am part of the target audience that McCain is trying to reach with the nomination of Palin. Personally, I am insulted, yet sadly unsurprised by their choice. As a group, we supported Hillary because she was accomplished and highly qualified for the job. What Sarah Palin gives us is a paper tiger, whose qualifications for the job include runner-up beauty queen. Excuse me? The blatant admission that they had written the entire speech before a candidate was chosen further supports their contempt for the American public.

Good stenography there, Fred. My only question: If "everyone" present wondered what the GOP operative meant by "too masculine" content (flamingly obvious sexism), why didn't anybody ask him? You act like you have Stockholm Syndrome or Battered Wife Syndrome. Do you even realize that you have been so beaten down by the radical right media manipulation cycle of threats, abuse and courtship that you're no longer asking the simple, obvious questions that reporters used to ask?

So, has the way they've browbeaten reporters over their own mistakes with Palin's selection enlightened you at all? Or does this post just prove you're determined to be more cautious with your questioning in the future?

TO OBAMANATION, who said...
"At least Palin could be a breath of fresh air, and of course all you brilliant fascist liberals have decided *before* she has said squat what she is about. Nothing more closed than the mind of a liberal..."

COULD be a breath of fresh air? First, you're not even sure and second, fresh air doesn't have the credentials to run for Vice President either - much less President, which she could very easily become.

What many have already decided is largely based on Palin's already established record AND her lack of a record. As for her speech tonight... you should have read the above article BEFORE writing your dumb comment. Palin's speech was written for her... before she was even chosen and is being tailored to fit her.

If that's a good sign to you... then by all means vote for her. Since you're so "open" minded you'd vote for fresh air.

McCain needs to keep the base 20% who only look for an Evangelical to vote for happy. He figures he can get the other 31% on his own, and so can then take the Whitehouse. At that point if Ms Palin leaves office it is up to the President to pick VP replacement - there is no line of succession for that position.

Obama selected Biden for what he can do for him After January 20 2009.

Instead of selecting someone "green", Obama selected someone who would not be afraid to voice there opinions.

If you think for one minute McCain would ever solicit one opinion on any issue from Palin while in office, you are crazy and naive. She didn't contribute one thought to the speech she is preparing to deliver tonight. Why is this?

It is not uncommon for candidates to have speech writers to express their views however this was not even the case for Palin. When Hillary Clinton gave her speech you could clearly sense that this speech was either prepared by Hillary or prepared by someone who has worked a long time for her. We all know that Obama did not prepare that speech for her. The public will never know the real Sarah Palin because John McCain will keep a short leash on everything she says and does between now and Nov. 2nd. Which leads to another thought, if McCain is not confident with her speaking her own words on the campaign trail, how is it that he is confident that she is prepared to lead the country. She is going for VEEP, but McCain’s age and health concerns make his VEEP choice should face more scrutiny.

It's a shame how dumb the public has become. Bush was the result of this same type of ignorance.

All I saw last night was "country first" signs, when the truth is "ambition first".

I agree that Palin is no Hillary.
As a staunch Hillary supporter under 40 I am here to say the Democratic Party has miserably failed women in my opinion.

When the rubber really met the road with sexism and experience versus the hot shot new guy who lies about every position, they stayed silent and acted like teenagers watching the next American Idol on FOX. As did NOW and the media.

RvWade they shout!
Surpreme Court they shout!

Wasn't it the Democrats who approved most of these conservative justices?

The McCain camp is always trying to keep a handle on everyone inside- his mother, his wife (with good reason), McCain himself (also with good reason) and now his VP- as we've seen almost every off-the-script moment of theirs (Palin's Foreign policy credentials: 'Alaska is the closest part of our country to Russia, so its not like she doesnt understand whats at stake here...') I could go on and on with examples- has resulted in embarrassment. So who can blame them for writing the highly 'personal' straight talk script before even knowing who the VP pick is. The McCain camp doesnt deal in people, they deal in protoypes. And then try to fit people into them.

Being governor of Alaska is about the equivalent of being mayor of Dallas.

Palin: B.A. degree in journalism, U of Idaho.;
Eight yrs. mayor, wasilla, AK, pop. 6500--debt-free when she took office, 23 million in debt when she left;
Governor of AK, 18 mos.;
Picked by McCain as running mate

Chime, you make it sound as if the 20% Evangelical crowd and the 30% who still support boosh have no overlap.

In reality, you've got the 20% who still believe the earth is flat and then maybe 10% on top of that who may not be die-hard Bible-thumpers but who still hate brown people. That's your GOP demographic.

I'm looking forward to hearing her speak tonight. I enjoy both conventions very much. It's real Americana, and it's captivating.

As I've posted repeatedly to WAPO comments, I think Palin is a groundbreaking choice for VP. She didn't get handed any of her accomplishments. She works very hard, has a lovely family, is strong in her Christian faith and has a record of bipartisan cooperation. All that is very compelling. I'm not surprised that almost all Republicans like her. What's not to like?

I certainly won't vote for her or Senator McCain, but I expect that her speech will help fill in the gaps for a lot of people that don't know much about her.

From what I've seen, she could be just as strong a VP as Cheney.

P.S. -- I see so many of my dear friends on the right who like to call liberals names, or ridicule us, or infer that we're robots bound to the command of Barack Obama, or portray us as communists or idiots. It's so cute when you do that. I would never do the same to you, though, my dear friends.

1st - no you haven't seen what happens when Mr Obama's teleprompter goes down, he is a seamless speaker, apparently in an age when George Bush the son is considered an orator. As such I am not surprised at all by the comments alluding that the ability to think on one's feet is some sort of failing.
2nd - yes, many politicians have speech writers simply because the first words that can come to mind are often not the best words. The speech writers usually just do some editing, NOT write the whole speech.
3rd - that some of you are scrambling so to find some way to make Sarah Palin and her lack of qualifications ok by attempting to repeat slanders used against Mr Obama only shows how truly desperate the RNC and it's supporters are at this moment in electoral history.
History will not be kind to you, but since the Republicans have chosen to adopt the tactics of George Orwell's '1984' as their playbook, they will simply go to NewSpeak, and re-write history in their favor.
The truth simply has nothing to do with the RNC anymore. Barry Goldberg is spinning in his grave.

One more lost opportunity for the republicans to take control of the process of introducing her to the voters. They're offering her in terms of broad political cliches, while the media is busy undercutting those cliches with facts and scandal.

Chime, you make it sound as if the 20% Evangelical crowd and the 30% who still support boosh have no overlap.

In reality, you've got the 20% who still believe the earth is flat and then maybe 10% on top of that who may not be die-hard Bible-thumpers but who still hate brown people. That's your GOP demographic. Acutually, you can add in 0.5% who are republicans for the right reason: they're rich. That's a very generous 30.5%.

So many people have asked me about what I know about Sarah Palin in the
last 2 days that I decided to write something up . . .

Basically, Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton have only 2 things in
common: their gender and their good looks. :)

You have my permission to forward this to your friends/email contacts
with my name and email address attached, but please do not post it on
any websites, as there are too many kooks out there . . .

Thanks,
Anne

ABOUT SARAH PALIN

I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992.
Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a
first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her
father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a
first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more
City Council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the
residents of the city.

She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular
girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and
won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because
she is a "babe".

It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She
kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents
for seven months.

She is "pro-life". She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby.
There is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby.

She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.

She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just "puts things out
there" and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a
champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly
sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his
work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or
so in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their
major source of income. Nor has her life-style ever been anything
like that of native Alaskans.

Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.

She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000
(at the time), and less than 2 years as governor of a state with about
670,000 residents.

During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running
this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been
pushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had
gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had
given rise to a recall campaign.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative". During her 6
years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over
33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the
City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation
(1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a
regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she
promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they
benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration
weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowed
money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it
with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage
the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said
she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or a
new library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of a
multi-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a piece
of property that the City didn't even have clear title to, that was
still in litigation 7 yrs later--to the delight of the lawyers
involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the
community but a huge money pit, not the profit-generator she claimed it
would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5m for road projects that
could have been done in 5-7 yrs without any borrowing.

While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her office
redecorated more than once.

These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus
in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will
make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she
proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she
recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while
she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's
surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas
or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by
her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the
basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected
City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from
the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents
rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin's
attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew
her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the
Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for
Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys". Palin
fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the City and as
Governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people,
creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally
grateful and fiercely loyal--loyal to the point of abusing their power
to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the
case of pressuring the State's top cop (see below).

As Mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's Police Chief because he "intimidated"
her, she told the press. As Governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top
cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure
and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that
an important factor in her decision to fire him was because he wouldn't
fire her sister's ex-husband, a State Trooper. Under investigation
for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than 2 dozen
contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she
later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to
replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded
for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew
her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in
help. The City Council person who personally escorted her around town
introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council
became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She
abruptly fired her loyal City Administrator; even people who didn't
like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness.

Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything
publicly about her.

When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got
the best, Chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one
of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no
background in oil & gas issues. Within months of scoring this great
job which paid $122,400/yr, she was complaining in the press about the
high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the
structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this
Commission (who was also the State Chair of the Republican Party)
engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move which some
undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all
her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and
garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a
gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit,
exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As Mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from
Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel
politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to
nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to.

As Governor, she gave the Legislature no direction and budget
guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing
projects, calling them pork. Public outcry and further legislative
action restored most of these projects--which had been vetoed simply
because she was not aware of their importance--but with the unobservant
she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork".

She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The State party
leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated
them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a
fiscal conservative.

Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah.
They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and
predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly
stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made
point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's
mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and
experienced manager, ran for Mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her.

As Governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together of package
of legislation known as "AGIA" that forced the oil companies to march
to the beat of her drum.

Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to
global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state
initiaitive that would have either a) protected salmon streams from
pollution from mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the
state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the State's
lawsuit against the Dept. of the Interior's decision to list polar
bears as threatened species.

McCain is the oldest person to ever run for President; Sarah will be a
heartbeat away from being President.

There has to be literally millions of Americans who are more
knowledgeable and experienced than she.

However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are
regretting it.

CLAIM VS FACT
*"Hockey mom": true for a few years
*"PTA mom": true years ago when her first-born was in elementary
school, not since
*"NRA supporter": absolutely true
*social conservative: mixed. Opposes gay marriage, BUT vetoed a bill
that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex relationships
(said she did this because it was unconsitutional).
*pro-creationism: mixed. Supports it, BUT did nothing as Governor to
promote it.
*"Pro-life": mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby
BUT declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-life
legislation
*"Experienced": Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has
residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska.
No legislative experience other than City Council. Little hands-on
supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city
administrator to run town of about 5,000.
*political maverick: not at all
*gutsy: absolutely!
*open & transparent: ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at
explaining actions.
*has a developed philosophy of public policy: no
*"a Greenie": no. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box stores
and disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.
*fiscal conservative: not by my definition!
*pro-infrastructure: No. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city
without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built
streets to early 20th century standards.
*pro-tax relief: Lowered taxes for businesses, increased tax burden on
residents
*pro-small government: No. Oversaw greatest expansion of city
government in Wasilla's history.
*pro-labor/pro-union. No. Just because her husband works union
doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim
that she is pro-labor/pro-union.

WHY AM I WRITING THIS?

First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed
voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting
programs in the schools. If you google my name (Anne, last name redacted

Alaska), you will find references to my participation in local
government, education, and PTA/parent organizations.

Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that "Bad things happen
when good people stay silent". Few people know as much as I do because
few have gone to as many City Council meetings.

Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out
of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no
fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will
cost me somehow in the future: that's life.

Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100
or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's
attempt at censorship.

Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to
say anything because they were somehow vulnerable.

CAVEATS
I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in
spending & taxation 2 years ago (when Palin was running for Governor)
from information supplied to me by the Finance Director of the City of
Wasilla, and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust
for inflation? for population increases? Right now, it is impossible
for a private person to get any info out of City Hall--they are
swamped. So I can't verify my numbers.

You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the
population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000", up to 9,000. The
day Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that the
current population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was
5,460. I have used about 5,000 because Palin was Mayor from 1996 to
2002, and the city was growing rapidly in the mid-90's.
9/3/2008 11:46:16 AM

why are you insulted? because mccain picked a woman for political purposes? if obama had picked hillary, it would have been for political purposes. every move each of these candidates makes is for political purposes...thats why its called politics. the fact is, mccain picked someone who shares his ides--a reformer who hates wasted gov spending. obama picked someone who shared hillary's ideas--biden voted for the war.

its women like you who claim to be "independent" and "support" women but who really must be jealous for some strange reason. why would you be offended by a smart, intelligent woman who has accomplished so much in such a short time. men are not offended that obama has done this, why should you be? the fact is, she is a GOVERNOR. she is an the executive and leader of a state. she's makes daily decisions that affect people. i'm sorry that she doesn't fit your mold of what a successful woman should be--old, big city, cosmopolitan--but that does not change the fact that she is a smart, capable, strong-willed woman. your comments are what is insulting and naive. maybe she was picked because she was a woman, but that does not diminish her capabilities. do you think lieberman would have been insulted if he had been picked because he was an independent?

you, and other women, need to re-think what it means to be a feminist. not every woman needs to share all of your views. do you think every black that will vote for obama is pro-choice? of course not. but that does not stop them from being proud and supportive. its a shame that a woman cannot count on the same support from fellow women who should know better.

This is a classic example of the ages old situation described as "being caught between a rock and a hard place". There is simply no way to explain away the reckless and irresponsible decision by McSame to have Mrs. Palin as his running mate. On the one hand, if McSame thoroughly investigated Mrs. Palin's background, then how can one explain the decision to place a 17-yr old pregnant teenager in the glare of a Presidential campaign. On the other hand, if McSame did not thoroughly investigate Palin before choosing her as his running mate, then how can that snap judgment be characterized as wise and prudent. No, the G.O.P. spin machine will never dig McSame out of this one. He's screwed either way he turns for no matter what he did, he proved himself to be a very poor and dangerous candidate for President of the United States. Obama/Biden 08!!!

Maureen Dowd's column today calls her a "Trophy Vice." If anyone harbors the fantasy that Sarah Palin is a self-made political success, they need to read a piece in the NYT titled "Palin’s Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual." Perhaps I'm guilty of seeing a Rovian/Gingrichian conspiracy behind every rising Republican star, but it sure looks to me like someone's been grooming her for this kind of a job for a long, long time. Here's some questions I hope an intrepid reporter (or debate moderator) asks:

What books did you want banned from the public library when you were the mayor? Why those particular books?

While you were mayor, who did you fire, or try to fire, and why? While you were governor, same question...

Why is there a flag of Israel on the wall of your office?

It has been suggested that you view the war in Iraq as a messianic affair in which the United States should act out the will of the Lord. What exactly did you mean when you spoke of the war as a "task that is from God?"

Your pastor at Wasilla Assembly of God has suggested that critics of George Bush will go to hell, that supporters of John Kerry cannot come into heaven, that Sept. 11 and Iraq are part of a war contending for the Christian faith, and that Jesus is now in a "war mode." Do you agree or disagree with the comments of your pastor?

You moved your family to a nondenominational church in 2002 but continue to worship at an Assembly of God. Why?

Your old pastor claims to have "words of knowledge" from God that, among other things, reveal the marital infidelities of his golf partners. Has he had any "words of knowledge" about John McCain's adultery? Have you ever had "words of knowledge" yourself or spoken in tongues?

Mike Rose, one of your pastors, said this during a sermon about a year ago: "Do you believe we’re in the last days? After listening to Newt Gingrich and the prime minister of Israel and a number of others at our gathering, I became convinced, and I have been convinced for some time. We are living in the last days." Is that what you believe, and how do your religious beliefs impact foreign policy?

Just two weeks ago, you attended a service at which David Brickner, founder of Jews for Jesus, said that terrorist attacks against Israel were God's "judgment of unbelief" on Jews who had not converted to Christianity. Is that what you believe, and how do your religious beliefs impact foreign policy?

Is America a Christian nation? What does that mean to you and the role of a Vice President?

It also emerged that in January the Alaskan Governor repeatedly laughed on air as a talk-radio host described one of her political opponents as a “cancer” and a “b__ch”. The opponent in question, Lyda Green, the Alaskan state senate president, is a cancer survivor. An audio recording of the interview with Bob Lester, the Alaskan “shock jock”, had received more than a quarter of a million hits on YouTube by yesterday morning.

Posted by: maybe they need to censure her for a reason | September 3, 2008 3:19 PM
| Report abuse

the more i read and see the more she scares me!

It also emerged that in January the Alaskan Governor repeatedly laughed on air as a talk-radio host described one of her political opponents as a “cancer” and a “b__ch”. The opponent in question, Lyda Green, the Alaskan state senate president, is a cancer survivor. An audio recording of the interview with Bob Lester, the Alaskan “shock jock”, had received more than a quarter of a million hits on YouTube by yesterday morning.

Come on you men - are you telling me that Obama did not use a teleprompter? Gosh - no male ever used any notes of any kind - even Abe Lincoln's Gettysburg Address was done just off the top of his head.

Just another excuse to bash a woman candidate for a leadership position - showing again that the Washington Post is not only lame but wholeheartedly sexist.

John McCain has chosen a running mate from the same far-right base that brought us George Bush. This is pretty much proof positive that he plans to continue the Bush policies for four more years. All this foo-rah about picking a female does nothing to hide this fact. The far right controlled George Bush, the far right controls McCain. Elect McCain and get four more years of the same...far right Republican policies.

Sarah Pallin and her disfunctional family have been a blessing for McCain as nobody mentions his 8 luxury homes or his participation in the Silverado Bank fraud he was part of along with Neil Bush who was fined {paid for by his fathers friends)..this fraud cost the taxpayers millions.

From:
Head of State
http://headofstate.blogspot.com/2008/09/unsurprised.html

Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Unsurprised

"No Surprises From Palin, McCain Team Says"-Washington Post

Senior McCain officials described themselves as "unsurprised" today as huge storms of locusts flew from Wasilla, Alaska and descended upon McCain campaign headquarters. "Locusts were vetted. Locusts were vetted in the vet" said one campaign official, who spoke without attribution out of concern that he would be devoured by a verminous flying cloud. The campaign also described as "expected" reports that the rivers were running black with ashes, that family pets were begin to speak in human voices, declaiming "Release Sarah!", and that a huge spreading stain was beginning to blot out the Northern sun. "Vetted", said the campaign.

"There are exciting new studies that show that locusts can be used as a source of biodegradable fuel" said Newt Gingrich, as he hunkered down to avoid the black marble obelisks falling from the sky around him. "Palin, if she can be said to have played a role in bringing about these new biofuel resources, should be praised for her innovative role in the solution to our future energy demands".

"These events firmly demonstrate Palin's deep connection to traditional modes of traditional expression, in traditional forms, traditionally." said William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard. "Experience, in the face of these more traditional events, is overrated..." continued Kristol, before ending the interview to wrap himself head-to-toe in mosquito netting and swallowing a bitter tasting anti-malarial drug, the taste of which, as his lips contorted, he noted to be "surprisingly refreshing."

Palin's schedule in the upcoming days of the Republican National Convention has been cut short due to, as one McCain communications aide reported, a desire not to "let the magic out of the bottle too quickly." "Sarah is a precious resource, who each moment brings a new vitality and energy to every worker on the campaign" said the aide, while fighting to remove the nest of serpents which had suddenly materialized on the floor beneath him, and were now slowly ascending his legs. "Do these bite, or just slink?" asked the aide, who spoke on conditions of anonymity so as not to provoke or otherwise alienate the reptiles.

Meanwhile, as the heavens darkened, the seas began to boil, and a deep voice tore through the clouds shouting, in stentorian tones to one and all: "It was a Mistake!", campaign offices described themselves as "unperturbed". "Serpents materializing, house pets suddenly called to vocal advocacy, celestial callings to revise and repent...Vetted" said the spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was turning into a pillar of salt. "Everything that was vetted was vetted in the vet."

Cite:
Head of State:
http://headofstate.blogspot.com/2008/09/unsurprised.html

To discuss Palin without using glowing terms and phrases is so sexist. I'm relieved that Fox News is not using any sexist language. To criticize Palin because her first son was born out of wedlock or that her first grandchild is being born out of wedlock is entirely irrelevant! This is a respectable woman who raises her children in a good christian home and makes dinner for them every night. She even helps them with the math homework and creationism lessons after long days drafting bills for the betterment of all Alaskans seeking secession.

"Furthermore, it behooves a party to have a speech "in the can" (as was done for the unnamed GOP VP nominee) for the same reason that this very newspaper writes obituaries for the decidedly undead well in advance."

I was merely trying to illuminate the ignorant about the reality of writing for a campaign. LOTS of stuff is done way in advance and edited/re-written/personalized at a later date. Fred Hiatt, being in the publishing business, is well aware of this. That's what makes his post so puzzling to me.

I can find many valid arguments against the GOP and Palin, but accusing them of being -- GASP! -- PREPARED --- seems silly.

Accepting the premise that it makes sense for McCain's team to begin drafting a speech for an unknown nominee, it is interesting to note that they didn't plan for the possibility that Palin would be the choice. This seems quite odd in light of the information elsewhere in today's Post that Palin was supposedly on the short list all along (she supposedly made a list of 20, and then 6, and then 2, before being selected). If that's true, then it would seem quite dumb for the campaign to assume the choice would be a man and not also prepare another draft speech for potential use by Palin. So either McCain's campaign is inept, or perhaps the story that Palin was a serious candidate all along isn't really true.

What I think is the most interesting about all this writing is the consistent lack of spelling knowledge on the part of the writers. One might agree with so much of the content, but misspellings without proofing, as well as haphazard slurs, portray incompetence--and these factors make many of us political novices (who would love to learn more) simply discount your epistles.

She'll be fine--she was a TV newscaster. Speaking in front of others is should be a piece of cake for her. I'm waiting a live debate where she'll have to speak off the cuff. Although... she might be okay there, as long as she's been prepped. She had to do that as a beauty queen. Who says she has no experience? TV newscaster, beauty queen, she's all set. ;-p All she was chosen to do was win over the religious right and that wasn't too hard.

It does seem true doesn't it, that McCain really wanted Lieberman. Those two seem to be real friends, not just opportunistic friends with a mutual self interest.

I doubt seriously if the Rove puppet masters would allow Lieberman at all ... a thing which would drive the evanglicals the rest of the way out of the party. They already hate McCain don't you know.

SO consider the idea: McCain picked one of their kind, a blatant evangelical true believer. She'll be blasted from all ends, eventually even from within her own party as they perceive the independents abandoning the idea of voting for republicans because of her.

Then McCain says to Rove and the evangelicals - see, I tried. It's not my fault she wasn't good enough. We're going to have to pick someone else or we won't have a chance in November.

And so the evangelicals, fearing the loss of power that would come with their stolen political party being run out of town, would bend over and let him pick who wants.

Could be that McCain is smarter than I thought.

OR, it could be that McCain is dumber than I though and Palin really was his best choice.

Fred Hiatt's blog post DOES indicate that he has a problem with a speech being written for an unnamed candidate, as do many of the posters here. I guess that's why I felt the need to respond.

As far as the masculine or feminine issue goes, speechwriters and fiction writers (who are often one and the same - LOL) write in a specific "voice" to convey their stories. Novelists capture the voice of their characters and speechwriters aim to capture the voice (inflections, speech patterns, pet phrases, etc.) of the speaker.

My guess is that the GOP party chiefs had a good idea of the points they wanted to drive home via the VP speech and wrote a generic one with a man in mind and with an eye toward personalizing it at a later date. There were not many women on the list of possibilities, nor in McCain's inner circle, after all.

Women and men do speak and gesticulate differently, and there is a craft to writing specifically for each.

As I mentioned before, we have so many issues to ponder in this election, and this shouldn't be one of them.

So much for John McCain "the maverick". If he was truly who he'd like everyone to believe, he would have chosen his buddy Joey Lieberman. But, the old maverick didn't have the guts - so he picked... what's her name?? And now everyone is surprised that he won't let her (she's not able to) write the speech of her life in 5 days. The GOP is very proficient at scripting - just not the truth!

Acting as if it's some kind of revalation that Palin has speechwriters is ridiculous. All presidents and candidates have them. This is yet another example of the biased liberal media trying to undermine Palin's speech by making something of nothing.

What you are going to see tonight is not a speech but a shot gun weeding on stage(aka engagement to the girl by the boy offering her a ring).
If that comes true, is that the message we want to send to our young ones?. "It does not matter just get married soon"

I'm still waiting for the reports about Biden's plagarism and the fact that his brother and son are indicted. There is a lot of nonsense in the mainstream media about Palin, but Biden and Barack are beyond reproach. The media is so in the tank for Barack, it's disgusting.

EVERYONE who speaks during a campaign is coached and has speeches written for them. There is no way ANYONE can have the very busy schedule of campaigning and has time to write their own speech. The coaching involves not just what and how you say it, but how it will be received. Also how it plays in the polling data. Duh!

Obama is running for President against McCain, not Palin even though she has more hands on experience the past 13 years than the Democratic nominee. Joe Biden, John Kerry and Joe Liberman are three very experienced Democrats that know full well and have said that McCain will make an outstanding leader and President. Even Geralding Ferraro said that Obama is only the nominee and the media's darling because of his African ancestry.

It appears that progressive (radical left) and liberal Democrats are only for a woman in high office, if she does and believes what they tell her. Throw all the dirt you want, after tonight more and more persons will listen to the facts about the candidates and less about the attack dogs saying anything to win for the Democratic ticket.

Obama writes his own speeches, but that is not how it's normally done. Usually, the candidates (Dems or Reps) have a speech writer who helps them with their speech.

It is a bit sad that Palin's speech is entirely written for her. I wonder if she had any input at all. I don't blame her for this. I blame the GOP for wanting her to be another rubber stamper before she's even accepted her nomination as VP.

Remember when Obama got called for giving a Patrick Duval speech? Axelrod, campaign manager for them both, had written the speech. Biden gave a speech that had been given by Neil Kinnock in which he (Biden) even used Kinnock's life story, not his own.

I agree that Anne79's post is well worth the read. This sort of post is the whole point of blogs.

To answer Matteucs' disingenuous dismissal, there is enough information in that post to figure out Anne's surname and if she is a real person or not. And there's certainly enough detail in the claims that they can be verified independently. So get to it, MSM! There's gold in them thar hills.

What I don't understand is how Palin is meant to be appealing to female Clinton supporters - they are diametrically opposed on so many issues, the only thing they seem to have in common is both being female, so did McCain assume that would be enough for women? It is a bit insulting to me in that it implies he thinks women are simple minded in their political choices.

A big difference is that while both Hillary and Sarah are mothers, Hillary's daughter is now an adult - she can focus 100% on her career, but Sarah is making her run with a 4 month old special needs child and she returned to her job as Governor 3 days after giving birth, even traveling long distances to and from a speech when in labor. That speaks to me of a priority where the family fits around the career as opposed to the career fits around the family. I respect the latter priority, not the former.

This is not just a small difference between these two women - it is seismic and there is no equating the two. Now you hear them talking 'oh these liberal females - it is ok for women to be out of the home only if they are liberals'. You're having us on, really!

Whether you are a liberal female or a conservative female, if you are a mother, reflecting on your own life, ummmm, it's an eye brow raiser, it is an extreme, it is kinda difficult to reconcile with your own experiences. I'm a well educated woman, but I didn't leave the house for the first 6 weeks with my baby, as is recommended for both the babie's and the mother's health. It is an important time for bonding.

I didn't do any kind of work that could not be done at home until she was 11 months old (and then only part-time), primarily because I knew that the first 6 to 8 months was very important for a child in terms of forming a sense of attachment to their mother and YES, I emphasize mother. Now assuming that the father is spending the most time with the baby while the mother is working, the baby is likely to form a secure attachment to the father (depending on how he is with the baby) but is likely to have an insecure attachment with the mother (primarily because the mother is not reliably there when the child attempts to draw her attention for comforting).

In a study by Main & Weston (1981) they looked the social responsiveness and emotional conflict levels of babies in four conditions: 1/ securely attached to both parents, 2/ secure with mother/insecure with father, 3/ insecure with mother/secure with father, 4/ insecure with both.

Now so far as I would understand things I would figure Trig is on track to fall into the third group, potentially also the forth. So what does that mean for Trig? The 3rd and 4th groups have the lowest levels of social responsiveness and highest levels of emotional conflict – the 4th of course being worse.

So all of this considered, to me, the idea of someone taking up a demanding role like 2IC to the leader of the free world seems an astounding choice when you have a 4 month old. Now it is all well and fine to have a career, but if you chose to have a family, there are certain things that you just do for an infant. You know, it is noble and honorable to, when you unexpectedly fall pregnant and find out the child will have special needs, to decide to have the child – but that only comes to full fruition if you follow through adequately on your commitments to that child after they are born.

Now you might make a distinction between how working mothers and stay at home mothers might view Palin’s decisions with regards to returning to work, but I would wager that the vast majority of working mothers never returned to work so quickly and would never have countenanced doing so and would be in large part in consensus with stay at home mums on the decisions that Palin made. I wonder how many women, when they come to pull the lever in November, will be pulling it for Trig and his wellbeing?

If McCain wins, I'll think Palin will be gone within the first year. To spend more time with her family or something. No way Cindy McCain is going to socialize with that woman for the next 4 years. Plus, what are the odds the Palin family will like living in DC? By all reports, they haven't been out of Alaska much. Though for those of us who live here, it would certainly be entertaining watching them navigate Washington society.

She's perfect for the republican ticket. As a former sportscaster, I'm sure she's great with a telleprompter.

Grandpa can tell war stories, she will smile and look hot while reading her lines, and Karl Rove's people will take care of all that boring policy stuff!

Seriously, she is a non-stop walking distraction. Between the pregnant teen daughter, the messy divorce, the retarded kid (but the noble sticking to her principles) the dead carribous and the snowmobile races, she'll keep people gossiping about nonsense until Nov 3rd, at least.

If we fall for this crap, we deserve the ruin that 4 more years of Karl Rove policy decisions will bring!

The GOP is like a pro-corp CIA shadow government...Like the Shah of Iran...I think there needs to be term limits on cabinet members as well as the presidency because they circumvent the Constitution with these puppets who are run by past administrations.

What Sarah Palin highlights, to an intensely disturbing degree, is the great divide between ideology and philosophies (multiple) of the Republican Party from that of the Democratic Party-seen through this woman-Palin-the chasm appears as wide as the Grand Canyon-it truly does smack of a culture war.

McCain picked her so she will not say much he doesn't want her to say. Actually the worst thing that could happen is that the same people who have been in charge for the last eight years tell her what to say.

P.S. And as for Hillary supporters, strangely, they WOULD have crossed by the millions to vote for McCain IF he had chosen Mitt Romney as VP! McCain/Romney REALLY COULD HAVE mopped the floor with Obama, but as usual, McCain shoots himself in the foot, every time. Very few of the Dem. supporters who cannot stomach Obama and fear his utter lack of experience would feel compelled to cross for THAT woman VP candidate, with her close to the proverbial white trailer trash family. McCain is McCain's worst enemy.

Joan-Wow, I hope you're still reading, because you could really benefit from taking a step back. I am a professional woman who also has a family that means the world to me. I don't feel threatened by Gov. Palin's job or family-good for her on all those counts. I feel threatened by

1. her politics-as-usual cynicism (Bridge to Nowhere flip-flop),
2. inattention to foreign policy and keeping America safe (hasn't had much time to think about Iraq?), and
3. unbridled political ambition (using wedge issues to drive out former colleagues in local elections for managerial positions).

---------
think its funny that people are so threatened by a successful woman. i mean, she can't be smart, right? she's just a governor...anyone can do that. well, apparently not any of you fools with your witty teleprompter jokes. maybe attacking a woman who has accomplished more in her 44 years than any of you guys will accomplish in several lifetimes makes you feel just a little bit better about your manhood. of course, unfortunately you'll be jolted back to reality about your shortcomings the next time you go to the bathroom.

I'm a Democrat and am embarrassed at the nastiness of so-called Dems and Obama supporters. What the heck happened to th "change" message and vision? Get out of the gutter will you? This woman isn't qualified enough for all this nit picking and nastiness.

You are getting bent out of shape bc Palin didn't write her own original speech?!!! GROW UP!!! Policy makers don't write their own speeches. Plus, Palin is NOT the democratic nominee for anything. So who care is she wrote it or not? Its all about the election.

She is the Republican token for VP. Just like Obama is the token candidate for president who makes us feel good about how liberal we are, how non-racist we are and how much better we are than them.

On the issue of the speeches, I've worked in Congress for years and have written a ton. Many were delivered verbatim or darn near it. Does that bring you to tears? I thought not. So please ppl stop being the jack arses that we've hated the past 8 years. I'm beginning NOT to look forward to having a Dem in the WH.

Never mind the prehistoric days when a politician might be expected to write his or her own words; speechwriters have been around since long before television. But traditionally their job was to channel their bosses' thoughts and ideas into poetry, or at least comprehensible English. Nowadays, apparently it's naive to expect a speech even to reveal something of the essential views or character of the speaker. Instead, campaigns -- not just the McCain campaign -- draft their speeches with an eye to which demographic groups need to receive which messages, and then we in the media rate the speeches based on how well we think they hit those targets.

Or that McCain sold his sole for Bush's 2008 endorsement. He'll say and do anything to get elected.

For those who actually pay attention to history, McCain hates George Bush.

During the 2000 campaign, Bush, Rove and Stampley searched for dirt on McCain. That's how the Manchurian Candidate moniker hit McCain. McCain now employs Rove.

Read Admiral Stockley's account.

November 26, 1999

John McCain in the Crucible

By JAMES B. STOCKDALE

CORONADO, Calif. -- I am not surprised by reports that Senator John McCain's political enemies have been spreading rumors that his famous temper is a sign of a broader "instability" caused by his imprisonment in Vietnam.

In fact, a few weeks ago I received a call from an old friend who is also close to the George W. Bush campaign soliciting comments on Mr. McCain's "weaknesses."

One US Senator, when he learned of the origin of the attacks on McCain, observed: "While McCain was getting tortured, Bush was flying jets defending Texas against Oklahoma.

http://www.miafacts.org/mccain_2.htm

I would have had more respect for McShame had he denounced Bush's endorsement.

The GOP faithful were against McCain before they were for him. Now they back yet another mental midget - Palin - that needs to be sequestered for days in order to be scripted. No standards, no pride. That is the state of the GOP.

You like the 'ordinary Joe Six Pack', huh? How about as your Doctor or dentist? Or your kid's nanny or schoolbus driver?

They'd vote for Bin Laden sooner than they'd support a Dem. They are a joke.

we've got lots of internet bloggers and crazies on here who have lots of "theories" and "ideas", but let's go over a few FACTS about obama:

-born out of wedlock
-used cocaine
-got a good deal on a house from a convicted felon
-served on a board and raised money with an unremorseful terrorist
-Harvard Law Review editor (i can't believe you people are still actually listing that as "experience"---how sad)
-state legislator who consistently voted 'present'
-has no idea (or even an opinion) as to when life begins
-4 year senator---accomplishments: zero
-career campaigner
-did not vote for the war---but picked a vp who did

the funny thing is, obama is a typical liberal elitist intellectual. he can't identify with working class people. he and his fellow lefty intellectuals just think they know best for them.

its funny that obama supporters and dems can only spend all of their time talking about inspiring speeches or attacking Gov. Palin. of course, i guess if you can't discuss actual accomplishments that your candidate has made while he has served as a US senator then you've got to talk about something. its sad really that you have nothing to say except "wow, he can deliver a speech" or "wow, he was editor of the Harvard Law Review". very sad.

Looking forward to Bunny-Hop’s speech tonite! Wonder if this lady will be a faster learner than Oliver North, semi-retired neocon militarist, in preparing for her all-networks debut. She's only apparently had a few days to master the noble art of television deception, though she's had prior experience in front of the cameras. And by accounts of those who know her, no trouble lying with a twinkle in her pretty eyes. I wonder if she'll be wired for prompting by her handlers, like other Red performers of late...

It took that "heroic" ape North something like 6 months with Republican handlers before they thought he was ready for prime time to "testify" like a Baptist preacher before Congressional committees investigating an earlier neocon geopolitical jerkery that came to be known as Irangate, or Iran-Contra, take your pick. "I don't recall," and "I was defending the nation as best I could," he said, yadayadayada. These folks are real pros at slowly hacking away at what remains of the Constitution. Ollie hid behind that word "honor," too -- and it got him a job at FOX! Oh well, at least he didn't escape military service by going AWOL or "having other priorities" or, my favorite in the case of Rush Limbaugh, having a painful pilonidal cyst. (He seems to have miraculously recovered long since, unless there's a donut pillow that we can't see, on that chair that has to bear the groaning weight of his body and his ego.)

And, said North, of the day he finalized the delivery of antiaircraft missiles to the Ayatollah's Iran in exchange for a variety of considerations (like the release of hostages),

"Everything was absolutely ideal on the day I gave the Iranian fundamentalists weapons that could shoot down US and Israeli aircraft, and a bunch of other stuff that I have been talking about more freely now that I have a pardon and the statute of limitations on treason has run.

"The sky was blue. The birds were singing. And the bastards were finally going to get what was coming to them. I mean the Commie Pinko Leftists bastards who dared to be democratically elected as the government of Nicaragua, via the weapons I purchased with money I got from Noriega and Columbian drug dealers and also maybe out of the Pentagon's Black Budget, I ain't saying."

Of course one might ask if the association between the Viral Ayers and Obama is any more substantial than the association between Cottontop and some guy named Charles Keating, who, with a few other kleptocrats inside and outside the government, brought about a fiscal meltdown and the destruction of the lives and savings of millions of Americans of about the same scale as the recent "sub-prime bomb." All Cottontop did, according to his pals in the Red-controlled Congress, was show "a little bad judgment" in showing up at meetings between the Keating Five and federal regulators. Natch, having a senior senator sitting down next to a greed-is-good self-promoter like Keating, at a meeting about the enforcement of regulations that would have maybe spared the taxpayers several hundred billions in bailout of all those savings and loan, junk-bond induced crashes and bankruptcies and foreclosures, has ABSOLUTELY NO EFFECT ON THE MINDSET OR BEHAVIOR OF THE REGULATORS, DOES IT? Did YOU make a bundle off the junk bond/S&L collapse/bailout? How 'bout the sub-prime bubble? If so, Cotton-Top and Bunny-Hop have a good likelihood of providing another such opportunity!

But she lobbies for tons of earmarks to pay for her irresponsible spending spree.

Is that GOP values now?

The party of Larry Craig. Hahahaha.

And what a maverick, she took on the only party that there was in Alaska - the GOP. If you wanted a job, you had to run as a Republican against Republicans. Else you get stuck as a busybody in the PTA. So spare me the fake-ass "Maverick" story. She just wanted a paycheck.

Wld anyone xpecther to write a speech? Sure she has a BA in journalsm from Iowa, and rad he sprts on the loal Alasa station, but her own material? Bsed o what exernce? Shean arace in a state ith the same population as Scranton agains th most revile governor in state istory, and her cmapaign was essentialy "I;m not him." o, hat exactly wold she base her speech on?

Of course what we will hear is "Obama is aweful, mccain i great, the "liberals" are all attacking me, (boo hoo) I had no idea Democrats coul be so aweful that they would bing my family into this (dos anyone remember what republicos did to Geraldine Ferarro when her son had a drug problem????? doesanone remember Monkey usiness??? Does anyone remeber Billy? Or Roger????)

And the Oliver North Republicans trashed Daniel Inouye, a Medal of Honor Winner...all because he dared to do his job at those hearings and question a career failure who never suceeded at anything in his life.

North should have been shot for treason, we are at perpetual confliect with Iran and he gave them AA missile systems (did he not think our #1 option would be to use air power!?!?).

Because they love the military.

Are those GOP values?

Face it, it is a regional religious party full of people who never read the Bible.

Someoe wrote bout palin resigning if the American people are so incredibl stupid that they fall for exactly the sam lesold by exactly the same liars whosod bush to some of the country twice. Howeve, congshas to approe the new vp, and if you thin that the Democratic congresswoul everapprove of LIEbeslug as vp y are drinking the kool aid very deeply.

at least my candidate has actually done things to talk up. again, your another in a loooooong string of posts who can't talk about any of your own candidates accomplishments. the streak continues...another pro obama post who can't discuss anything the man has done in the last 4 years. again, how sad. maybe you and other dems can identify with that because you haven't accomplished anything yourself. i guess some people will blindly follow anyone even when they don't know anything about them.

and by your logic, i guess all those 18 million hillary supporters should not vote for obama. he wasn't there choice. i mean, he was barely the choice of your own party. of course, you can always count on the 9 thousand or so people who voted for biden.

The "SPEECH" tonight is only the first of many that will be fed to her by the Republican Party. I expect that she will be able to read the teleprompter a whole lot better than McCain tomorrow night.
It scares the hell out of me that she will be able to perform in such a way as to absolutely wipe out any questions about her abilities to actually serve this nation as Commander in Chief.
Of all the things the Republicans have done, this is one of the most frightening.

Palin did a good job - 42%
Palin did a bad job - 45%
I need more info - 13%

Country is too polarized, no more honest opnion out there.

But if Obama has picked someone as bad as Palin, whoa baby! The GOP now loves unwed moms, as long as they are white Republicans. How curagoues to make those kids get maried! What a great idea! Way to compound a misake!

oh and moochie, don't discuss morals. you're the party of pro-obama edwards. oh, and the classic bill clinton. actually, obama himself was born out wedlock. thats morals? well, perhaps to someone named "moochie", but not to the rest us.

"While we all wondered to ourselves what might make a speech masculine or feminine, no one batted an eye at the underlying revelation: that the campaign was writing the nominee's speech before knowing who the nominee would be."

woman for obama--i'm still here. sorry you don't appreciate humor. i would think as an obama supporter, you must laugh a lot. i guess i was wrong. but as for your misgivings about Gov. Palin, why don't you tell everyone here some of the actual things that obama has accomplished as a senator that you believe in. not speeches, not ideas, actual things he has done. you can point to things that Gov. Palin has done that you might not like, but why don't you try something positive---here's your chance to say some things that obama has done in the last 4 years as a senator that made you support him. or are you just one of those typically blind individuals who follows the party, even when the party is being led by someone who has done absolutely nothing as a us senator.

Dude who chased the intern too. Iwill see your Edards and raise you those two. And McCain bailing on his crippled wife.

So I guess you'll vote for Barr? You seem to have issued with kids born out of wedlock - includes your VP's kid. Your optionsjust got limited.

Oh, and I cannot idenify with success - as a small business ownrer who is self-made. Getting killed by health care costs. Go punch a clock, you have no idea wht he GOP has doe to small biz in AMerica. You have that luxury.

And if I voted for W twice I'd be qestioning my jugement on EVERYTHING.

Obama wrote his own speech. Biden wrote his own speech. Both of the Clintons wrote their speeches. Yes, the speechwriters might have cleaned up a few lines for clarity, but they wrote their own speeches. It was the expression of their beliefs.

On the republican side, not only has Palin not written her own speech, but it is very probable that McCain didn't write his own speech.

The difference - the democrats want to convey their beliefs and the republicans want to convey whatever info to nail down the vote from every constituency it needs to pander to in order to get re-elected. "GET ME A POLLSTER AND A SPEECHWRITER - NOW!!!"

McCain is no longer a maverick. He is nothing more than a political cynic looking for the way to get the votes. And this is agreed to by the comments of long-time GOP operatives Mike Murphy and Peggy Noonan.

What is really sad about all of this is that McCain has become a politician like Bush and has destroyed his reputation in the meantime.

There is no longer a "Straight Talk Express". In fact, McCain won't even talk to the press - especially if his aides face tough, but fair, questioning by reporters such as Campbell Brown. (McCain cancelled an interview with Larry King because of the questioning by Campbell Brown on CNN of McCain staffer Tucker Bounds)

Did you do any digging to find out if this was done with the speeches at the DNC? I'm honestly curious, because if everyone is doing it, it's depressing. If it's just the RNC, I'm not surprised.

Writing the speech before the candidate is even decided upon seems to be a new low, but the Obama campaign did vet every word of every speech at the Democratic convention in advance, and strike out anything that was "off-message." This is par for the course in modern campaigning.

I am so upset she used all of her children as bait to get some of her points across for what she "stands for" Being a mother with a child who as special needs I am outraged that she pulled that card to voters! I am sick to my stomach! And how can she properly raise a special needs child being in office? How can she always be there for this child? She can't!

I think with or without a speech writer we got to see our Sarah tonight. Oh boy, do I already have a bad feeling about her. I am English born living in the US for 20 years and therefore immediately bias against the right wing, However, praise where it's due. She executed a fabulous performance with her poor family being paraded before the nation. This woman showed me that she stands for everything I find repugnant about politics and the hard right. How could any parent with a conscience think it OK to let your 17 year old daughter be front page fodder for the tabloids. I have a17 year old and I would be ashamed of my self if she didn't know about choice and condoms and consequences of action. What kind of parent would I be to make my child get married to her first fling.
This is the end of democracy and a new era of hypocrisy.
kurthans@twitter.com

Here's the best part. Sarah Palin is a the GOP's secret weapon of mass left wing destruction. Anyone who thinks McCain and the GOP stumbled upon her two weeks ago is nuts.

As Oakridge, TN was to the A-Bomb, Anchorage, AK is to the neutron bomb that the GOP has been working on now for several years in Sarah. Long before it was clear Obama was going to wind up beating Hillary, the GOP knew that they had to come up with a female that could appeal to the heartland of America and beyond. Sarah was the answer.

Like the GOP or not.......you have to give them credit for what they have done here. This is Asymmetric warfare at it's best.

They will now prepare to board the chartered jets, and Prevost coaches, and roll all over America, playing to audiences that don't watch all that much CNN, or MSNBC, or read the online version of the Post or Times. They will show up at the NFL, High School Football Games, NASCAR, Rod & Gun Clubs, and every VFW Hall they can physically get to.

Women, more specifically mom's.....especially the 40-60 age group that have or are still living thru the challenges of raising a family, will come out in droves, and they will bring their smiling husbands along with them, cause after all, she aint all that bad of a Gal now is she.

Still to early to call it game over....but mark my words, the Dems and most of all the press, come election day will all be standing there wonder what in the hell hit em.

In the end, she will speak her own words and she will speak her mind.......but for now, what in the heck is wrong with reading from a team prepared speech. After all, battles are won by teams of people, not individuals.

I am not overly impressed with the way you choose to report your news. Sara Palin's speach tonight was probably one of the best I have head from anyone nominated for the position of VP.

Why would Mr. Hiatt think for one second that the speeches of any of the political candidates would not be written by speech writers? This is what they do best. What the speech writers cannot do, regardless of how good their speech writing is, is tell the person giving the speech how to be convincing in their presentation.

Is it possible that a woman with a husband of many years, five children, one no less going to Iraq in less than a week and a new born baby with Down Syndrom (Sp.) be less convincing?

I would be the first to say that politics is no place for a woman but it is obvious to me after listening to her speech tonight, Sara is not your typical woman. She is able to distinguish good from evil and she can spar with the best of them.

Votes are free and anyone who promises to give me and each members of my family a $1,000 dollars is someone who is speaking my language. Particularly, if I am not an American and I couldn't care less where he will obtain this money.

But I do care and I have listened to politician after politician tell me he is going to do something for me and after he gets into office he fails to deliver. Sara appears to me to be the kind of woman who will keep her promise and I intend to vote for her.

"....And no, Obama did not use a teleprompter during his speech last week."

Kelly, you weren't watching closely enough. Teleprompter stands are visible on both sides of the stage in some wide shots(though they are clear glass or plexiglass on very narrow stands).

The monitors that reflect the words onto the reflective screens would be nestled flat into the floor.

For a speech of this importance you would be an idiot NOT to use a prompter, regardless of political party.

One difference here is that the networks didn't show the words on Obama's screen (which are only visible from the speaker's point of view), while CBS showed a shot over Palin's shoulder a couple times with words on her prompter.

Clinton went off-prompter on his speech...which is why he went a lot longer than his scheduled 10 minutes. I'm assuming he added additional stuff he thought of (or planned to talk about) that wasn't in the 'official' transcript. He's good at that. Obama is not.

Who gives a "bleep' whether or not she wrote it or not. All candidates are assisted with writing there speeches. It wasn't as obvious as Obama's teleprompter speech. The media is trying to find everything and anything to discredit Palin cause she presented a damn good speech and now she's a threat to the Dems.

"She's clearly NOT qualified in terms of education, experience and background. Simply unbelievable

____________________

No offense, Jaxon, but I wasn't aware that a candidate needed to have a Master's degree or a degree from an Ivy League school in order to run for office. What about her education disqualifies her? She has a 4 year degree from the University of Idaho. It's not like she took a few semesters at a community college or something.

Comments like that are kind of insulting to those of us who couldn't afford or didn't quite work hard enough in high school to attend Yale, Harvard or Princeton.

"Let the entire GOP machine pick and choose every word of the speech. At some point Palin will have to do a live, unscripted debate.
Posted by: OK by me"

Don't be too sure. Remember how ABC turned the last Dem debate into an opportunity to bash Obama for an hour about flag pins and Reverend Wright? Do not underestimate the degree to which the media (yes, including Broder's boys st this newspaper) and their corporate masters need a McCain victory, and will do everything they can to deliver one. Count on the media to soft-pedal Palin's gaffes and amplify her talking points.

Sara Palin described herself the best "a pit bull with lipstick" and we all know the proper name for a female dog!!!
As usual the Republican Party would like nothing better than to turn this into a name calling election with no change in domestic policy, war around the world, tough gun (nuclear) toting western mavericks with a mission to bully the world. Yes the republican party are "DIVIDERS NOT UNITERS”. I wonder who will be the first one caught calling Obama the “N” word .
They could care less about middle class America and even less about lower class or poverty Americans "they just want a handout from government, they put themselves in poverty, foreclosure and bankruptcy because they are lazy".
America needs to wake up and smell the garbage of the last eight years and NOT vote for four more!! Lets show the party of BIG OIL, PHARMACUTICALS, WARMONGERS, LIARS, THIEFS, CEOs, BANKERS and FAKE HOCKEY MOMS (who by the way has had nannies taking care of her children starting with the first) that 98% can't relate to them just like they can't relate to us.
THEY JUST DON'T GET IT!

Sara Palin described herself the best "a pit bull with lipstick" and we all know the proper name for a female dog!!!
As usual the Republican Party would like nothing better than to turn this into a name calling election with no change in domestic policy, war around the world, tough gun (nuclear) toting western mavericks with a mission to bully the world. Yes the republican party are "DIVIDERS NOT UNITERS”. I wonder who will be the first one caught calling Obama the “N” word .
They could care less about middle class America and even less about lower class or poverty Americans "they just want a handout from government, they put themselves in poverty, foreclosure and bankruptcy because they are lazy".
America needs to wake up and smell the garbage of the last eight years and NOT vote for four more!! Lets show the party of BIG OIL, PHARMACUTICALS, WARMONGERS, LIARS, THIEFS, CEOs, BANKERS and FAKE HOCKEY MOMS (who by the way has had nannies taking care of her children starting with the first) that 98% can't relate to them just like they can't relate to us.
THEY JUST DON'T GET IT!

Of course Obama writes his own speeches. That's what he does, writes and speaks. That's all he does, and the only experience he brings to the table. He's a lawyer for crying out loud. He's never owned or run a business. He doesn't understand the economy, as evidenced by his myriad socialist proposals. You don't create jobs by taxing to death the people that own the businesses that do. You don't create jobs by making it ever more expensive for those business owners to hire people. Mandating employers to provide health insurance means fewer jobs.

Sarah Palin outperformed all expectations last night, including handling the teleprompter flawlessly until it malfunctioned, at which point she went went from memory and personal conviction, and brought down the house! I enjoyed reading the paranoid ravings of left wing despair above. Can't imagine the liberal apoplexy after Palin impales Biden in their debates.

What a shocking news story! A professional speech writer helped Palin! What has the Republican party come to???? I assume that the speech that Barack gave last week just flowed out of his mouth from up on high... Gimme a break - Gheez!

Fred, is there some reason you did not mention that Obama wrote his own speech? He did as was mentioned several times during the DNC convention even if the wingnuts can't accept the reality of that. He got a room and went off by himself and wrote it.

They of course didn't watch the DNC gathering because they were not allowed by their conditioned mindset. They just waited for Rush and the mind molders to tell them what they were to think. We have seen this so many times it is beyind rediculous.

For the record, it's called a TelePrompTer, as the AP Stylebook emphasizes. Palin was TV sports reporter and journalism major, so she has used a TelePrompTer before. She reportedly also attended GOPAC training which included media training.

But we aren't hiring a TV personality to be the next Ann Coulter.

I'm more concerned by the lack of CONTENT in the speech than her ability to deliver some one liners.

Here's some content missing from the speech:

Last time I looked we have a $10 Trillion fed debt, a $482 billion annual deficit ($1,600 a year per woman, man and infant) that doesn't include off-balance sheet accounting for two wars, and everyday 10,000 more boomers are hitting 65 to qualify them for Social Security.

The economy in Alaska may be just peachy due to $140 a barrel oil. Palin increased $2,000 annual payout to each "native born Alaskan" with a $1,200 bonus. That's more largess than Chavez in Venezuela, hence 80% approval.

But the rest of the country isn't shipping $140 barrel oil to Japan, instead we're shipping 2 million jobs to China, Vietnam and Mexico.

I didn't hear her address any of those pressing issues with solutions that wouldn't fit on a bumper sticker.

I'm not convinced that either McCain and Palin are capable of positive real change in this country. To begin with, and with all due respect for McCain's military background, neither of them represents Americans of today. Neither one of them are in touch with the realities of the problems this country truly faces. And they are incapable of intelligently discussing these issues.

The choice of Palin by McCain displays his ineptness. She has no meaningful experience worth a hoot regardless of the spin doctors. And I could deliver a speech just as well if Mr. Gerson or the actual speechwriter wrote one for me to deliver.
After all, she was well coached. She did a good job of it, there's no denying that, but delivering a speech does not qualify you to be Vice President or more likely President.

McCains health is a major issue also here.
After eight disastrous, wasteful years of Bush do we as patriotic Americans want not only more of the same, but additional devestating agendas from the Supreme Court and the religious right? I think not!

The above link is an article in Time about Obama and how he writes his speeches. He writes them and then has advisors review his speech.....sounds like a little bit more than what most politicians do...probably why his speeches are so compelling. They are from the heart.

Mrs. Sarah Palin needs to stay home and take care of her 5 children (along with the grandchild because we all know this lady is going to be the sole provider for that child). And don't get me started on her publicizing off of her baby with Down Syndrome who is going to need the most attention and love from his mother. Don't get me starting on her children being used as political props and poor Trig being passed around on stage at the RNC or her teenage pregnant daughter that is going to face years of agony in the spotlight because of her mother's selfishness. Her family needs her more than the American people and hopefully she will be forced to step down and not be the republican nominee for VP. I also hope she won't get an offer to star in a reality television show, even though her family wars are very intriguing..